Wheeled toy



1961 J. D. TIER! 2,996,836

WHEELED TOY Filed Oct. 24, 1960 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I w W232i;

INVENTOR JZl-sl'in .D. Tier-i ATTORNEY Aug. 22, 1961 J. D. TIER] 2,996,836

WHEELED TOY Filed Oct. 24, -196O 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1N VENTQR -72151111. .D. liez'i BY mafiawg ATTORNEY United States atent 2,996,836 WHEELED TOY Justin D. Tieri, 628 Parkside Ave. NW., Grand Rapids, Mich. Filed Oct. 24,1960, Ser. No. 64,610 10 Claims. (Cl. 46-104) The present invention relates to wheeled toys.

The primary objects of the invention are to provide a wheeled toy which is novel in appearance and in operation; to provide such a wheeled toy which has a body in simulation of an animal, and a handle by means of which a child can propel the toy across a floor; to provide such a toy having forwardly projecting upper and lower jaws, the lower jaw being stationary with respect to the body and the upper jaw being movable in opening and closing relation to the lower jaw in simulation of the action of the beak of a fowl, the jaws of an alligator, or other animal; to provide such a wheeled toy in which the movable upper jaw is automatically oscillated through opening and closing movements when the toy is pushed across a floor; to provide such a toy which has utility as well as amusement value, in that it can alternately be used by the child to pick up other toys, blocks or small objects and to transport them to a designated storage space for deposit there; and to provide novel, rugged'and simple mechanism for actuating the toy.

v An illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown inthe accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of the new' toy shown in operable position with the wheel thereof contacting the floor and with the handle of the toy in rearwardly-upwardly extending position, certain parts at the outer extremity of the handle being shown in section taken on line 11 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the toy, the handle thereof being here shown fragmentarily;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of parts of the toy taken on line 3--3 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the toy with the cover part of the toys body removed;

FIGURE 5 is a horizontal sectional view thereof taken on line 5-5 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary front elevational view of the toy;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the toy in position for claming an object-as here shown, a toy block-between its jaws;

FIGURE 8.is a side elevational view thereof with the object clamped between the jaws of the toy and the toy tilted to .a position for carrying the object;

FIGURE 9 is a greatly enlarged side elevational view of certain mechanism housed within the toy; and

FIGURE 10 is .a fragmentary sectionalview of the same taken on line 10-10 of FIGURE 9.

' Referring now in detail to these drawings, the wheeled toy there shown comprises' a body generally designated 20 which is formed and decorated in simulation of an animal and as here shown is in simulation of a caricatural fowl, and an elongated handle 21 by means of which a child can push the body 20 across the floor. The body proper is desirably made in two parts, a main body part 22 having a downwardly and forwardly opening cavity 23 in one side thereof, and a complementary cover part24 fitted flush against the flat side of the main part 22 into which the cavity 23 extends, the cover thus enclosing said cavity. Pins 25 secure the two body parts together. The body part 20 has an integral forwardly projecting lower jaw portion 26, while the cover part 24 also has a forwardly projecting lower jaw portion integrally formed therewith, and these two lower jaw porice tions for the entire lower jaw which extends the width of the toy. This lower jaw is stationary with respect to the body 20.

An upper jaw member generally designated 27 is pivotally mounted on the main body part 22 by means of a screw 28, (see FIGURES 4 and 5), this upper jaw member being thus swingable about a horizontal axis near the front of the cavity 23. The upper jaw member has a rearward lever arm 29 within the body cavity 23 and an upper jaw part 30 extending forwardly of the body and movable in opening and closing relation to the lower jaw. The upper jaw part 30, which is outside the body proper, is coextensive in width with the lower jaw 26.

A wheel 31 is turnably mounted in the body cavity 23 on a shaft 32 having its opposite ends disposed in holes in the main body part 22 and the cover part 24 respectively. The wheel 31 extends below the body 20 for contact with a floor whereby movement of the toy across the floor rotates the wheel about a horizontal axis. A circular cam 33 is provided on the cover side of the wheel 31 eccentricallythereof, the cam being here shown" integrally formed with the wheel.

A pair of spaced guides, an upper guide 34 and a lowerguide 35, are slidably disposed in a straight, generally upwardly extending groove 36 (shown in solid lines in FIGURES 5 and 10 and in dotted lines in FIGURES 7-9) in the inside of the body cover 24. The upper guide- 34 is connected by means of screws 37 to the rearward nected to the upper guide .34 and lower links 39 pivotally connected to the lower guide 35. The toggle includes a' helical tension spring 41 connected to the links 39, 40 at their points of pivotal connection to each other, whereby the toggle is normally urged to extended position as shown in full lines in FIGURES 4, 9 and 10. The spring 41 is sufliciently strong to maintain the toggle in this extended condition during normal operation of the toy. a By normal operation is meant merely pushing the toy 5 across the floor, so that rotation of the wheel 31 and the cam 33 oscillates the extended toggle and the upper jaw member 27, the forward upper jaw part 30' of said memher being thus freely oscillated through opening and closing movements during such normal operation. The

positions ofthe cam 33, the toggle, and the lever 29 in their extreme positions of downward and upward move ment, are indicated in full lines and dotted lines, respec-' tively, in FIGURE 9..

I c A helical compression spring 42 (see FIGURE 4) is interposed between the upper wall of cavity'23 and theupper side of lever arm 29 rearwardly of the pivotal mounting of the upper jaw member at 28. This spring 42 serves to normally urge the lever arm 29 downwardly and the upper jaw 30 upwardly, but not with suflicient' force to overcome the force of the tension spring 41 inthe toggle, so that during normal operation of the toy the toggle remains extended and the upper jaw 30 is normally urged toward its is maintained in contact with cam 33,

The handle 21 of the toy is of tubular form, closed at it outer end with a plug 43 threaded therein, and threaded at its inner end into an opening 44 (see FIGURE 4) in the upper rearward part of the main body part 22. The'i interior of the tubular handle 21 thus communicates with a the cavity 23 in the body of the toy. A trigger 45 is pivotally mounted on and between spaced brackets 46 secured to the outer end of the toys handle 21, said trigger 45 extending through aligned slots 47 (see FIGURE T upper position and the arm 38 i 1) in the upper and lower side walls of the handle. An elongated connecting element 48, which may comprise a cord, cable or other suitable element, extends through the interior of the handle 21 and into the cavity 23 of the toys body 20, said element having its outer end connected to the trigger 45 and having its inner, or lower forward end inside the bodys cavity 23, connected to the rearward end of the lever arm 29.

It will be seen that when the trigger 45 is pulled rearwardly from its solid line position to its dotted line position seen in FIGURE 1, the upper jaw 30 of the toy is forcefully drawn toward the lower jaw 26 so that the jaws may clamp therebetween an object such as the toy block 49 seen in FIGURES 7 and 8. The child operating the toy may thus gather up his other laythings, perhaps at the command of his mother or other attendant, and wheel them away to their proper storage area at the end of the play period. During this transport of the object, the manual pull on the element 48 and the opposing force of the clamped object effectively overcome the force of spring 42 so that as the cam 33 alternately elevates and lowers the lower guide 23, the toggle is alternately contracted and then extended by the toggle spring 41, as seen in broken and full lines respectively in FIGURE 9. When the child releases the trigger 45, a compression spring 50 (see FIGURE 1) within the handle 21 and interposed between the trigger and the plug 43, returns the trigger to its forward position and relaxes the cord or cable 48 thus depositing the carried object at the desired place and thus restoring the toy to its normal operating condition.

The invention thus provides a toy having features both entertaining and utilitarian, and while but one specific embodiment of the invention has been herein shown and described it will be understood that numerous details thereof may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the following claims.

I claim:

1. A wheeled toy comprising a body simulating the body of an animal, said body having a downwardly and forwardly opening cavity therein and an integral forwardly projecting lower jaw, an upper jaw member mounted on the body for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis and having a rearward lever arm within the body cavity and an upper jaw part extending forwardly of the body and movable in opening and closing relation to said lower jaw, a Wheel mounted in the body cavity and extending below the body for contact with a floor whereby movement of the toy across the floor rotates the wheel about a horizontal axis, and cam means associated with the wheel and with said lever arm whereby rotation of the wheel oscillates said upper jaw member.

2. A wheeled toy according to claim 1 in which the toy includes a handle projecting rearwardly and upwardly from the body when the body is in upright operable position.

3. A wheeled toy according to claim 1 in which the cam means comprises a circular cam on one side of the wheel eccentrically thereof, and said lever arm having downwardly projecting means bearing against said circular cam.

4. A wheeled toy according to claim 3 including spring means urging said lever arm toward said circular cam.

5. A wheeled toy simulating the body of an animal, said body having a downwardly and forwardly opening cavity therein and an integral forwardly projecting lower jaw, an upper jaw member mounted on the body for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis at the front of said cavity and having a rearward lever arm within the body cavity and an upper jaw part extending forwardly of the body and movable in opening and closing relation to said lower jaw, spring means interposed between the upper jaw member and the body for urging said upper jaw part toward its open position relative to said lower jaw, a handle projecting rearwardly and up wardly from the body when the body is in upright operable position whereby the body may be moved across a floor, an elongated connecting element extending along the handle and connected at one end to the handles outer end, said connecting element extending forwardly and downwardly through an opening in said body and being connected at its other end to the rearward lever arm of the upper jaw member whereby an outward pull on the elongated element raises the lever arm thus forcing the forward upper jaw part of the upper jaw member downwardly into biting relation with the lower jaw thus to clamp an object between said upper and lower jaws.

6. A toy according to claim 5 in which the handle is of tubular form communicating with the body cavity at its lower forward end and in which the handle has a trigger pivotally mounted on its outer end to which the outer end of the elongated connecting element is attached, said connecting element extending through said tubular handle.

7. A toy according to claim 5 in which a wheel is mounted in the body cavity and extends below the body for contact with a floor whereby movement of the toy across a floor rotates the wheel about a horizontal axis, a cam on one side of the wheel eccentrically thereof, and said lever arm having downwardly projecting means bearing against said cam whereby rotation of the wheel oscillates said upper jaw member.

8. A wheeled toy according to claim 7 in which the downwardly projecting means on the lever arm includes yielding 'means for permitting rotation of the wheel and the cam without oscillating the upper jaw member.

9. A wheeled toy according to claim 8 in which a pair of spaced guides is slidably disposed in a straight, generally upwardly extending groove in the inside of the body, the upper guide being connected to the rearward part of said lever arm and the lower guide bearing against said cam, and in which said downwardly projecting means comprises a toggle having interconnected upper links connected to the upper guide and lower links connected to the lower guide, said toggle including a spring normally urging the toggle to extended position whereby rotation of the wheel and the cam thereon normally oscillates the extended toggle and the upper jaw member, and the spring means interposed between the body and the upper jaw member being of such force as to be overcome when an outward pull is exerted on said connecting element whereby to permit alternate contraction and extension of said toggle so that the upper jaw remains in biting relation to the lower jaw as long as the trigger is held to maintain a pull on said elongated connecting element.

10. A wheeled toy comprising a body simulating the body of an animal, said body having a main body part provided with a downwardly and forwardly opening cavity in one side thereof and a complementary cover part fitted flush against said side of the main body part to enclose said cavity at said side, and said main body part having an integral forwardly projecting lower jaw, an upper jaw member mounted on the body for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis at the front of said cavity and having a rearward lever arm within the body cavity and an upper jaw part extending forwardly of the body and movable in opening and closing relation to said lower jaw, a wheel mounted in the body cavity and extending below the body for contact with a floor whereby movement of the toy across the floor rotates the wheel about a horizontal axis, a circular cam on the cover side of the wheel eccentrically thereof, a pair of spaced guides slidably disposed in a straight, generally upwardly extending groove in the inside of the body cover, the upper guide being connected to the rearward part of said lever arm and the lower guide bearing against said circular cam, a toggle comprising interconnected upper links connected to the upper guide and lower links connected to the lower guide, said toggle including a spring normally urging the toggle to extended position whereby rotation of the wheel and the circular cam thereon normally oscillates the extended toggle and the upper jaw member, spring means interposed between the upper jaw member and the body for normally urging the upper jaw members rearward lever arm toward said cam, a tubular handle projecting rearwardly and upwardly from the body when the body is in operable position, the interior of the tubular handle communicating at the handles lower forward end with the cavity in said main body part, a trigger pivotally mounted on the handles outer end, an elongated connecting element extending through the tubular handle and connected at one end to the trigger and at the other end to the rearward lever arm of the upper jaw member whereby actuation of the trigger to pull upwardly on said connecting element raises the lever arm thus forcing the 6 upper jaw part of the upper jaw member downwardly into biting relation with the lower jaw thus to clamp an object between said upper and lower jaws, and the spring means interposed between the body and the upper jaw member being of such force as to be overcome during further rotation of the Wheel and the cam whereby to permit alternate contraction and extension of said toggle so that the upper jaw remains in biting relation to the lower jaw as long as the trigger is held to maintain a pull on said elongated connecting element.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,486,101 Megorden Mar. 4, 1924 1,668,005 Dougherty May 1, 1928 1,701,734 Stephens Feb. 12, 1929 2,525,859 Braund Oct. 17, 1950 

